DOCSLIB.ORG

American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism'

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism' H-SHEAR Field on Grodzins, 'American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism' Review published on Sunday, August 1, 2004 Dean Grodzins. American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism. Chapel Hill and London: University of North Carolina Press, 2002. xiii + 631 pp. $39.95 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-8078-2710-9. Reviewed by Peter Field (Department of History, University of Canterbury) Published on H-SHEAR (August, 2004) With Heretics Like These, Who Needs Saints? Dean Grodzins has written what is without doubt the definitive treatment of the early life of Theodore Parker. This is no mean feat as Parker was an exceptional individual, who contributed in vital ways to nineteenth-century New England and American culture. As the title of the book under review suggests, Parker joined with Ralph Waldo Emerson, Margaret Fuller and others to play a key role in the development of Transcendentalism. He also contributed to New England religious culture as well as participated in abolitionism, temperance, and other reform activities. Born in Lexington, Massachusetts in 1810, Parker grew up in a family of farmers and mechanics whose chief claim to fame was John Parker, the captain of the local militia at the Battle of Lexington in 1775. Theodore, John's grandson, was something of a prodigy, beginning his formal schooling at the age of six. Parker later recalled that from an early age he had been stung by ambition--"smarter than those around him and he knew it," Grodzins observes (p. 21). At Harvard Parker crammed three years of study into a single year, although finances prevented him from earning his AB. Initially planning on a law career, he ultimately turned to ministry, attending Harvard Divinity School. Apparently destined for great things within the Unitarian faith of eastern Massachusetts, Parker began his career modestly, assuming the pastorate of the rather small parish of West Roxbury. A moderate in both social and theological views, Parker might well have bided his time until a better offer presented itself. But such was not to be, as Parker entered the time of his life he called his "period of disappointment": a trying marriage, theological disputation, and ultimately virtual ostracism by his Unitarian brethren. Born into a nondescript Lexington farming family, Parker was determined to move up in the world. His driving ambition included a determination to marry well--to fall for the right woman, one that provided security and instant status. And, of course, he did just that. Lydia Dodge Cabot may have been the love of Parker's life, but their marriage was hardly blissful. How could it be? They resided with Lydia's Aunt Lucy, in her house, in fact; they lived beyond Parker's modest income as pastor of Spring Street Church in West Roxbury; they spent precious little time alone; and, Grodzins suggests, engaged in marital relations only infrequently. They remained childless. Theodore routinely butted heads with Aunt Lucy, while Lydia constantly found herself betwixt and between two powerfully opposing forces. The tug-of-war between the Cabots on the one hand and the husband on the other was never a fair fight. Perhaps the Cabots spoke with more than just the Lowells, as the famous Citation: H-Net Reviews. Field on Grodzins, 'American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism'. H-SHEAR. 07-10-2013. https://networks.h-net.org/node/950/reviews/1198/field-grodzins-american-heretic-theodore-parker-and-transcendentalism Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. 1 H-SHEAR saying went, but they most certainly spoke not with the Parkers. Relations turned so sour in the marriage that Parker could write, in Greek script, as Grodzins has deftly deciphered, "Go where I may, this fact stares me in the face [My wife is a] DEVIL. I. HAVE. NO. HOPE. In. LIFE" (after p. 294). In the late 1830s and into the 1840s, Parker undertook many of the activities for which he is renowned. He established himself as one of the Transcendentalists, contributing to the Dial, and for a time editing the Massachusetts Historical Review. He attended the 1840 Chardon Street convention, after which he became deeply involved in numerous reform movements. The following year he delivered the first of what were to become smashingly successful lecture series. The Boston Association of Unitarian ministers graciously condemned these first lectures, entitled "Religion," even before he delivered a single one. In the same year Parker delivered and published his famous sermon "A Discourse on the Transient and Permanent in Christianity." By this time Parker, now thirty years old, had established himself as the most prominent Unitarian critic of Unitarianism. Many of his colleagues surely would have concurred with Grodzins's assessment that Parker was a heretic. Parker's famed activities in relation to fugitive slaves and antislavery are conspicuously absent; being the first of two volumes, the narrative breaks off in the middle of the 1840s before Parker's abolitionist career began to take off. American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism is based on the author's 1993 dissertation, and includes a wealth of additional material from work done in the succeeding decade. It also reflects the mind of a mature scholar, who has presented, discussed, evaluated, and published on Parker over several years. For those of us who know the author, this volume turns out to have been worth the wait. Not only is American Heretic an important accomplishment on its own, it easily supercedes everything else written on Parker, period. The nineteenth-century works are far out of date; Henry Steele Commager's Theodore Parker: Yankee Crusader (1936) is a weak book, and the more recent efforts just do not measure up. This is the definitive treatment. That having been stated, not everyone will necessarily agree with Grodzins's interpretations, particularly about the place of religious disputation in Transcendentalism. Was Transcendentalism, in Perry Miller's phrase from a half century ago, "a religious demonstration?" Is the religious aspect what most interests scholars today? And just how heretical was Parker? With heretics like these, it is tempting to think, who needs conservatives! More on these questions shortly. American Heretic breaks new ground in myriad ways. Anyone who thinks they understood Parker heretofore will profit immeasurably from reading and studying this book, as new material informs every page. Grodzins as the meticulous scholar is in evidence throughout. Four examples will suffice. First, Grodzins deciphered Parker's script and managed to "translate" his subject's journals in their entirety. Next, the author identified and utilized "many anonymous published writings by Parker that have never before been attributed to him" (p. 499). The third and fourth, illustrations relate to Parker's manuscripts, and reveal investigative skills worthy of CSI. Hyperbole aside, Grodzins's keen eye picked up the fact that some of Parker's usage of Greek in his journals proved to be transliteration of English, undertaken apparently to mislead his wife. "On closer inspection," as the author notes, "the Greek passage turns out to be in English but written in Greek characters as a kind of code." Finally, with the help of modern technology and know-how, Grodzins managed to recover writing that Parker had, or thought he had, erased from his journals. So ingenious are these efforts, Citation: H-Net Reviews. Field on Grodzins, 'American Heretic: Theodore Parker and Transcendentalism'. H-SHEAR. 07-10-2013. https://networks.h-net.org/node/950/reviews/1198/field-grodzins-american-heretic-theodore-parker-and-transcendentalism Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License. 2 H-SHEAR that the author has reproduced some of his investigative efforts in the book itself. On the basis of such tenacious researching, and the resulting mountain of information isAmerican Heretic constructed. As colleagues and comrades of the author might have surmised,American Heretic is a very sympathetic biography. Upon completion of his study of Charles Francis Adams, Martin Duberman noted that biographers ultimately must decide whether their subject tends toward the heroic or the craven, that being the nature of biographical study. After devoting his entire academic career to date to the examination of Theodore Parker, Dean Grodzins has chosen the former. Parker emerges less as a heretic than a hero, his heresies salutary and laudable, and the man himself courageous and well intentioned. Grodzins renders Parker's actions heroic and his religious ideas an important challenge to what Emerson called a "corpse-cold" Unitarian faith. This is not to say that Grodzins is not critical of his subject. Good scholarship must be critical, and this is scholarship of the first order. Evident are Parker's many weaknesses, foibles, and blemishes. Most notable of these are Parker's prickly sensitivity and, at times, his overblown sense of self- importance. Selflessness is a rare commodity among major intellectual figures to be sure, but some disguise their driving ambition better than others. Emerson, for example, managed to make it appear that fame sought him out. Parker, to the contrary, did the seeking. This is a biography that takes it subject on its own terms. A glance at the table of contents declares as much. There are ten chapters, the title of each is a direct Parker quotation--to wit: "I Preach Abundant Heresies," "Shut in for My Own Good," "The Ashes of My Success." The words "I," "Me" or "My" feature in seven of the ten chapter titles. Not that Grodzins is not critical, for he surely is. But this is a sympathetic project "of recovery." Grodzins reminds the reader that although Emerson, Thoreau, Fuller, and other leading Transcendentalists have been much studied, Parker's life remains "a great hole in our knowledge of the past" (p.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Theodore Parker's Man-Making Strategy: a Study of His Professional Ministry in Selected Sermons
    Loyola University Chicago Loyola eCommons Dissertations Theses and Dissertations 1993 Theodore Parker's Man-Making Strategy: A Study of His Professional Ministry in Selected Sermons John Patrick Fitzgibbons Loyola University Chicago Follow this and additional works at: https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss Part of the Literature in English, North America Commons Recommended Citation Fitzgibbons, John Patrick, "Theodore Parker's Man-Making Strategy: A Study of His Professional Ministry in Selected Sermons" (1993). Dissertations. 3283. https://ecommons.luc.edu/luc_diss/3283 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses and Dissertations at Loyola eCommons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Loyola eCommons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License. Copyright © 1993 John Patrick Fitzgibbons Theodore Parker's Man-Making Strategy: A Study of His Professional Ministry in Selected Sermons by John Patrick Fitzgibbons, S.J. A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate School of Loyola University of Chicago in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Chicago, Illinois May, 1993 Copyright, '°1993, John Patrick Fitzgibbons, S.J. All rights reserved. PREFACE Theodore Parker (1810-1860) fashioned a strategy of "man-making" and an ideology of manhood in response to the marginalization of the professional ministry in general and his own ministry in particular. Much has been written about Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) and his abandonment of the professional ministry for a literary career after 1832. Little, however, has been written about Parker's deliberate choice to remain in the ministry despite formidable opposition from within the ranks of Boston's liberal clergy.
    [Show full text]
  • Lexington and Concord
    National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior Lexington and Concord: A Legacy of Conflict Minute Man National Historical Park On April 19, 1775 ten years of political protest escalated as British soldiers clashed with “minute men” at Lexington, Concord, and along the a twenty-two- mile stretch of road that ran from Boston to Concord. The events that occurred along the Battle Road profoundly impacted the people of Massachusetts and soon grew into an American war for independence and self-government. This curriculum–based lesson plan is one Included in this lesson are several pages of in a thematic set on the American supporting material. To help identify these Revolution using lessons from other pages the following icons may be used: Massachusetts National Parks. Also are: To indicate a Primary Source page Boston National Historical Park To indicate a Secondary Source page To Indicate a Student handout Adams National Historical Park To indicate a Teacher resource Lesson Document Link on the page to the Salem Maritime National Historic Site document Lexington and Concord: A Legacy of Conflict Page 1 of 19 Minute Man National Historical Park National Park Service Minuteman National Historical Park commemorates the opening battles of the American Revolution on April 19, 1775. What had begun ten years earlier as political protest escalated as British soldiers clashed with colonial militia and “minute men” in a series of skirmishes at Lexington, Concord, and along the a twenty-two-mile stretch of road that ran from Boston to Concord. The events that occurred along the Battle Road profoundly impacted the people of Massachusetts and soon grew into an American war for independence and self-government.
    [Show full text]
  • The Paradox of Theodore Parker: Transcendentalist, Abolitionist, and White Supremacist
    Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University History Theses Department of History Fall 12-16-2015 The Paradox of Theodore Parker: Transcendentalist, Abolitionist, and White Supremacist Jim Kelley Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_theses Recommended Citation Kelley, Jim, "The Paradox of Theodore Parker: Transcendentalist, Abolitionist, and White Supremacist." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2015. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/history_theses/98 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of History at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in History Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE PARADOX OF THEODORE PARKER: TRANSCENDENTALIST, ABOLITIONIST, AND WHITE SUPREMACIST. by JIM KELLEY Under the Direction of David Sehat, Phd ABSTRACT Theodore Parker was one of the leading intellectuals and militant abolitionists of the antebellum era who has been largely overlooked by modern scholars. He was a leading Transcendentalist intellectual and was also one of the most militant leaders of the abolitionist movement. Despite his fervent abolitionism, his writings reveal an attitude that today we would call racist or white supremacist. Some scholars have argued that Parker's motivation for abolishing slavery was to redeem the Anglo-Saxon race from the sin of slavery. I will dispute this claim and explore Parker's true understanding of race. How he could both believe in the supremacy of the white race, and at the same time, militantly oppose African slavery. Parker was influenced by the racial "science" of his era which supported the superiority of the Caucasian race.
    [Show full text]
  • The Battle of Lexington and Concord
    RS#16 Evidence I: Bloody Butchery A BLOODY BUTCHERY, BY THE BRITISH TROOPS OR, THE RUNAWAY FIGHT OF THE REGULARS. Being the PARTICULARS of the VICTORIOUS BATTLE fought at and near CONCORD, situated Twenty Miles from BOSTON, in the Province of the Massachusetts-Bay, in New- England, between Two Thousand Regular Troops, belonging to his Britannic Majesty, and a few Hundred Provincial Troops, belonging to the Province of Massachusetts-Bay, which lasted from Sun-rise to Sun-set on the Nineteenth of April, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy-five, when it was decided greatly in favor of the latter. Part of which has never before been printed. These Particulars are now published in this Form, at the Request of the Friends to the Deceased WORTHIES, who died gloriously fighting in the CAUSE OF LIBERTY and their COUNTRY; and it is their Desire that every Householder in America, who are sincere Well-withers to the American Colonies, may be possessed of the same, either to frame and glass, or otherwise to preserve in their Houses, out only as a Token of Gratitude to the Memory of the Deceased Forty Persons, but as a perpetual Memorial of that important Event, on which perhaps, may depend the future FREEDOM and GREATNESS of the COMMON-WEALTH of AMERICA. To which is annexed, A FUNERAL ELEGY on those who were slain in the Battle. (The Second Edition corrected with some Additions.) CREATED/PUBLISHED Boston, 1775. http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?ammem/rbpebib:@field(NUMBER+@band(rbpe+0380090a)): Educational materials developed through the Baltimore County History Labs Program, a partnership between Baltimore County Public Schools and the UMBC Center for History Education.
    [Show full text]
  • Who Fired the “Shot Heard 'Round the World”?
    Educational materials were developed through the Teaching American History in Anne Arundel County Program, a partnership between the Anne Arundel County Public School System and the Center for History Education at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. Who Fired the “shot heard ‘round the world”? Author: Elaine M. Price, Odenton Elementary, Anne Arundel County Public Schools Grade Level: Middle Duration: Two class periods Overview: On April 19, 1775, the Battle of Lexington and Concord marked the first military engagement of the American Revolution. Colonists had gathered in the early morning on Lexington Green to prevent approaching British troops from destroying guns and ammunition that were stored in nearby Concord. The gathered faction of colonists was ordered by the British to disperse when “the shot heard ‘round the world” was fired and the American Revolution began. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote that immortal line in his 1837 Concord Hymn, but what is perhaps most intriguing about that fateful shot is that no one knows for sure who fired it. Eyewitness accounts with differing opinions about the opening shot abound. In this lesson, students will asked to make their own decision as to who they think fired the first shot by reading and analyzing primary source documents. They will be asked to defend their opinion by citing primary source evidence. Content Standards: Era 3: Revolution and the New Nation (1754­1820s) Standard 1: The causes of the American Revolution, the ideas and interests involved in forging the revolutionary movement, and the reasons for the American victory. Standard 2: The impact of the American Revolution on politics, economy, and society.
    [Show full text]
  • The Causes of the American Revolution
    Page 47 Chapter 11 The Battle of Lexington ngland had hoped to bring the colonists to their knees with the Intolerable Acts. She succeeded only in increasing their determination to defend themselves and excited an outpouring of Esympathy for the oppressed New Englanders. In September of 1774, the first Continental Congress met in Philadelphia. The Congress called for a total boycott against British imports, began authorizing preparations for a "defensive" war, and addressed a series of declarations of rights and grievances to mother England. With the Congress calling for united action, each colony began to arm itself. Everywhere guns were primed, ammunition was stored, and men were drilled. In Massachusetts the preparations were inspired and coordinated by Samuel Adams and John Hancock. Meanwhile General Thomas Gage, appointed to replace Governor Hutchinson, re-occupied Boston with his hated redcoats and waited for reinforcements to arrive from overseas. One of Gage's officers, Major John Pitcairn, called for "one active campaign and burning two or three of their towns to set everything to rights." Early in the morning of April 19th Captain John Parker stood before his hastily gathered militia while Pitcairn was riding toward Lexington, Parker placed his men, about 70 in number, on the village green, a few yards away from the road to Concord. The British appeared in the morning mist and formed seemingly endless rows of soldiers. The major shouted for the colonists to disperse and the fate of America hung in the balance. Then a shot was fired—or was it two? Without awaiting orders, the British regulars opened fire and the air rang with the screams of the injured and the moans of the dying.
    [Show full text]
  • 5 Causes to the American Revolution
    Grade 5 Subject: Social Studies Goes with Pages: 1-4 Topic: Grievances and Protests: Road to the American Revolution What Your Student is Learning: Students will understand that: ● A government’s actions can lead to rebellion and/or revolution by its citizens. Students will be able to: ● Cite evidence from text to tell a narrative from multiple perspectives Background and Context : Students have been learning about Colonial America and how the American colonists lived with little interference from the British government. Students have also been analyzing the relationship between the indigenous people (Native Americans), the French settlers, and the American colonists. They have learned that tensions between the group came to a clash called the French and Indian War (1754-1763. The results of the war ultimately led to political and economic between the American colonists and their mother country Great Britain. This lessons is a review of the major events that lead to the American Revolution. Ways to support your student: (questions to ask, responses to look for, representations they should use, etc…) ● Read each section of text with your student. ● Ask questions about the reading at the end of each paragraph. ● Ask your student to paraphrase the directions. Online Resources for Students: Listen to an audio reading on the Stamp Act at: https://www.ducksters.com/history/american_revolution/the_stamp_act.php https://www.history.com/news/american-revolution-causes 5 Causes to the American Revolution 1 Directions: Illustrate a summary of each of the following events that led to the American Revolution. Then create a timeline and add each illustration to the timeline.
    [Show full text]
  • April 19, 1775 Lexington & Concord
    American Revolution April 19, 1775 Lexington & Concord The British Army infantry had occupied Boston since 1768 and were reinforced by their naval forces and marines. They were ordered to enforce the Intolerable Acts, which the British Parliament had passed to punish the Province of Massachusetts Bay for the “Boston Tea Party”. On April 18, 1775, an 80 strong band of militiamen stood guard in the village common, under the leadership of Captain John Parker. After standing guard most of the night, with nothing happening, they were about to disperse, when word came that the British troops were advancing towards them. At sunrise on April 19, the advance guard of the British troops, reached the commons of Lexington and ordered the assembled militia to disperse. Since no hostilities had commenced, Captain Parker of the militias, knew he was outmatched. One of the British Officers called out to the militias to lay down their arms……. Read: Causalities http://totallyhistory.com/battles-of-lexington-and-concord/ Watch: _____ British https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GUwfnC0jaDs&list=PLYEU9jLVlDxQ8qO52Xa8hQHyEzeP4MU35 _____ Continental If you are Captain Parker what do you do? A. Lay down your arms and disperse (or leave) because you will lose many men and perhaps your own life. B. Knowing you are outmatched you decide to fire first and take the advantage. C. You dare not order your militia men to fire because you are outmatched and hope that the British will not fire and back down. If they fire you know you must fight. Why: ________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________ June 17, 1775 Battle of Bunker Hill Following the beginning of the war at Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775 the citizens of Boston found blockaded the land approaches; General Thomas Gage and 4,600 British soldiers held the city itself.
    [Show full text]
  • ` the Boston Gazette Thursday, April 20, 1775
    ` The Boston Gazette Thursday, April 20, 1775 The Revolutionary war has commenced as battles start in Lexington and Concord. Volunteers urged to join war as they are promised that the British tyranny will end with their help. The war for independence is underway. Our messengers have informed us that the first shots of the war were fired at 5’oclock in the morning. As the battle of Lexington went underway, John Parker was the lead general, for the militiamen as there were about 80 militiamen who were set to fight against the British redcoats who were led by Commander Francis Smith, as the American troops were outnumbered by 300 British Redcoats. The British troops demolished the American’s as there was only a single casualty on the British side, so John Parker and his troops were forced to retreat to Concord where 400 militiamen had formed to resist the British regulars, who themselves fled the battle of Concord, as now they were outnumbered. And the battle of Concord resulted with a win for the colonists. As of now this is all our messengers have for us, and any further reports will be told in tomorrow’s section. The news of the war has spread all over the colonies, and there is still outrage over the British tyrannic control of Boston. Thousands of British redcoats are still garrisoned in Boston, And General Thomas Gage is still forcing upon all the tax acts put into place over the past decade, without any concern for the people who live here and aren’t in the condition to pay for the utterly terrible taxes that the British tyranny have kept in place.
    [Show full text]
  • Battles of Lexington and Concord the Battles of Lexington and Concord Signaled the Start of the American Revolutionary War on April 19, 1775
    Battles of Lexington and Concord The Battles of Lexington and Concord signaled the start of the American Revolutionary War on April 19, 1775. The British Army set out from Boston to capture Samuel Adams and John Hancock, rebel leaders, in Lexington. They also wanted to destroy the colonists’ storage of weapons and ammunition in Concord. Both cities were located in Massachusetts. Lexington The Battle of Lexington was a small fight that can hardly be called a battle. It is important though because it is where the Revolutionary War started. There were only around 80 American Militiamen, led by Captain John Parker, in the town when the British arrived, About 25% of the men were related to Parker. They were up against a much larger British force, about 700 men, led by Major John Pitcairn. Neither of the sides actually planned to fight, but in the midst of the confusion, a gunshot went off forcing the British to attack. Some of the colonists were killed and the rest fled. “Shot Heard Around the World” The gunshot is known as the “shot heard around the world” named by Ralph Waldo Emerson in his poem “Concord Hymn.” It is unknown who actually fired the first shot. The British marched to the city of Concord after Americans fled from Lexington. When they first got to Concord, they met little resistance and started searching the town for the militia’s hidden stash of weapons and munitions. The Americans had retreated to the outskirts of Concord and observed the British from the other side of the North Bridge.
    [Show full text]
  • Visitors Center Exhibit Information Construction
    LEXINGTON Visitors Center Appendix C: Construction Documents 02.27.2019 Design Project Management TABLE OF CONTENTS 1 Type Palette 2 Color Palette 3 Graphic Elevations 121 Graphic Typicals 16 Exhibit Details and Drawing TYPE PALETTE The fonts for the Visitor Center present Lexington’s rich historic heritage in a modern, clean aesthetic. ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Primary Headline—Gotham Condensed Medium ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 0123456789 abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Secondary Headline—Atma Serif Italic ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 0123456789 abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Text Font—Thesis Sans ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 0123456789 abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz Caption—Thesis Sans Italic Lexington Visitors Center - Construction Documents Type Palette Design Project Management • 02.27.19 1 WHITE PMS 7401 PMS 7751 PMS 181 PMS 7545 RICH BLACK Lexington Visitors Center - Construction Documents Color Palette Design Project Management • 02.27.19 2 NOTE: Elevations are for layout only, NOT FOR PROOFING. CL 01.GR.09 01.GR.04 01.GR.05 01.EX.01 01.GR.01 01.GR.02 01.GR.03 01.GR.10 01.GR.07 01.GR.08 01.GR.06 01.EX.02 Visit Lexington WELCOME TO LEXINGTON Tour Lexington LIBERTY RIDE TROLLEY BATTLE GREEN TOUR FIRST SHOT! TOUR Ride along historic Battle Road! AYour onboard costumed guide The Lexington Visitor Center offers a free guided walking The Lexington Historical Society invites you to walk in will recount the exciting events of April 19, 1775, and also tour of the historic green, the site of the April 19th the footsteps of Paul Revere, Samuel Adams, John highlight the area’s literary and cultural legacy. skirmish between British troops and the Lexington Hancock, and George Washington! Explore three militia.
    [Show full text]
  • Historical Handbook, Minute Man National Historical Park
    HISTORICAL HANDBOOK MINUTE MAN NATIONAL HISTORICAL PARK MASSACHUSETTS by John Luzader, DENVER SERVICE CENTER HISTORIC PRESERVATION TEAM NATIONAL PARK SERVICE RITEO STATES DEPART= OF THR INTERIOR DENVER, COLORADO SEPTEMBER 1973 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Vignette: English Politics 1 Vignette: George III 5 Vignette: Militia and Minutemen 7 Chapter I: Birthplace of the Revolution 11 The People 27 Chapter II: Triumph and Discord 33 Chapter III: A Colony in Crisis . .. .• • • •. 63 Chapter IV: The Eve of Revolution 84 Chapter V: Revolution 100. Lexington 100 Concord 108 The Retreat 121 Chapter VI; Epilogue 128 Notes on Sources 140 VIGNETTE ENGLISH POLITICS Parliament emerged from the "Glorious Revolution" and the Revolutionary Settlement with greatly enhanced power that increased during the first half of the 18th century. Under England's Constitution of "mixed and balanced powers," King and Parliament were partners in governing the Kingdom. Although in theory the Crown retained its historic prerogatives, these were exercised in its name by Cabinet ministers who ultimately were as dependent upon parlimentary support as upon royal pleasure. The parties that functioned in Parliament were not pol- itical parties in the modern sense, nor even in the sense that had divided the nation during the Stuart period. Political contests were no longer between Whigs and Tories, but between Whigs in office and Whigs out of office: one shifting coali- tion against another. The great Tory party of the reigh of Queen Anne had been wrecked on the rocks of Stuart restoration. A half century and more of Whig rule and almost unbroken mount- ing prosperity had made classical Toryism an eccentric anachronism.
    [Show full text]